Print Topic

SimplyScripts Screenwriting Discussion Board  /  Screenwriting Class  /  Aging charaters in a script
Posted by: Warren, October 8th, 2018, 7:39pm
I've read a few scripts that deal with this, and I don’t know if there is a preferable way to handle it.

Scripts that cover the lifetime of a person. How would you handle the aging process?

For example, if the lead character has scenes where he is  5, 16, 21, 30, 50. You can’t use the same actor for all those ages. The older ones wouldn’t be a problem.

Would you capitalise the lead characters name every time his age changes or only when you think the actor would change? Would you also do this for all the other characters aging around him.

If you write a character with his age (JOHN, 19) would you do the same for every other character that ages with them or is it perfectly reasonable to assume that if the lead ages, so does everyone else by default.

Then there is the issue of how to handle the character name before dialogue. I’ve seen it written as JOHN throughout regardless of age, but I’ve also seen JOHN AT TEN, JOHN AT TWENTY ONE etc.

I don’t ask from a rules perspective, just from a clarity perspective.

It’s doing my head in; I keep changing my mind about how to best to do this.
Posted by: Warren, October 8th, 2018, 7:41pm; Reply: 1
I'm thinking of capitalising whenever any character needs a different actor, only giving the age of the lead, and keeping his name constant throughout for dialogue.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 9th, 2018, 1:51am; Reply: 2
This all depends on whether it is the same actor or a different one. One actor may be able to play a role where he is 20 and ages to 40 etc... however a 20-year-old isn't going to be able to play a 6-year-old. Also, the voice would change.

If the dialogue can be read by one actor throughout, then leave it as is and write the age in the action. If a different actor is needed, then I would indicate this by using a different name in the dialogue - even if it means writing JOHN (AGE 6).
Posted by: Warren, October 9th, 2018, 1:57am; Reply: 3

Quoted from DustinBowcot
This all depends on whether it is the same actor or a different one. One actor may be able to play a role where he is 20 and ages to 40 etc... however a 20-year-old isn't going to be able to play a 6-year-old. Also, the voice would change.

If the dialogue can be read by one actor throughout, then leave it as is and write the age in the action. If a different actor is needed, then I would indicate this by using a different name in the dialogue - even if it means writing JOHN (AGE 6).


Thanks, while that is my least favourite option for the dialogue, it might be the way to go. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button uses the age in the name version. Forrest Gump keeps the character names as FORREST throughout and only indicated the age changes for Forrest in the action.

I guess at the end of the day as long as it's clear and consistent.

I am interested to hear some more opinions if anyone has something wildly different.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 9th, 2018, 2:11am; Reply: 4
I've never seen Forrest Gump. Were different actors and their voices used?

The reason I would use the age is only to make it easier for an actor to find their lines in a script. If you know you're playing JOHN (AGE 6) then you can go straight to the lines without any confusion.
Posted by: MarkRenshaw, October 9th, 2018, 2:31am; Reply: 5
Don't worry about casting, that's up to the director and other such people. Just pick a method for highlighting that your character has aged and keep it consistent throughout.

As for methods you have several options. You can include a SUPER that specifies the date so it is obvious when the time has changed. For example, if earlier in the script it was SUPER: SPRING 1991 and John is a child, when it changes to SUPER: WINTER 2018 it is going to be obvious that John will have aged.  Just to highlight this is the same John, you can briefly cover it in the action, e.g. 'John, now all grown-up and sporting a beer belly, fiddles with a pen.'

If you keep bouncing back and forth between times it could get confusing, so in that instance I'd give John different names. If young John is only going to be used in flashbacks, I'd refer to his character as YOUNG JOHN throughout and the older character who has more screen time as simply JOHN.  You could specify the age each time like JOHN (12) and JOHN (25) but personally that would irritate me if I were reading that script.

When I'm writing such things I prefer the first method I mentioned.
Posted by: ChrisBodily, October 9th, 2018, 9:50pm; Reply: 6
I'm writing a coming-of-age thing where several characters age. The character based on me ages from 5 to 14.

What I'd do is (especially if your timeline is linear) cap the character every time he ages and leave it up to the director. S/he'll decide how many actors s/he needs.
Posted by: CameronD, October 10th, 2018, 1:09pm; Reply: 7
Why would the actor cast have any impact on your story?
Posted by: FrankM, October 10th, 2018, 2:23pm; Reply: 8

Quoted from CameronD
Why would the actor cast have any impact on your story?


It might be trying to keep the budget reasonable, or at least let a reader know how many actors are needed.

5-year-old is obviously a child actor.
30- and 50-year-olds probably one actor and a lot of makeup.
16 and 21 will be a judgment call by the casting people. If they're lucky, the 5-year-old has an older brother and the 30-year-old can be made to look young.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 10th, 2018, 2:36pm; Reply: 9
For the first time ever I am writing a script with particular actors in mind filling the main parts. I'm actually going to contact them once the script is done in the hope they want to attach themselves (to the project). It's also the very first family romcom I've ever written. People who know me here know I don't write romcoms. I've written 52 pages in 3 days. Should have a polished-ish-enough draft in 3 weeks.

It's been a while since I've written something for myself. Feels good.
Posted by: FrankM, October 10th, 2018, 3:42pm; Reply: 10

Quoted from DustinBowcot
For the first time ever I am writing a script with particular actors in mind filling the main parts. I'm actually going to contact them once the script is done in the hope they want to attach themselves (to the project). It's also the very first family romcom I've ever written. People who know me here know I don't write romcoms. I've written 52 pages in 3 days. Should have a polished-ish-enough draft in 3 weeks.

It's been a while since I've written something for myself. Feels good.


416 pages in all? That's getting close to Sophie the Gelded Space Stallion territory :)
Posted by: Warren, October 10th, 2018, 6:16pm; Reply: 11
Thanks all, I appreciate the advice.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 11th, 2018, 1:26am; Reply: 12

Quoted from FrankM


416 pages in all? That's getting close to Sophie the Gelded Space Stallion territory :)


haha, no. It will be around 100 pages. It's three weeks for a polished draft. The initial draft will be finished probably by this Monday. Then comes the polish that will take one to two weeks. To be honest, it should only take 2 weeks in all but I'm allowing an extra week leeway as things can come up. I also have a lot of work coming in soon that will get in the way. That's another reason why I'm not hanging around in getting the first draft down.
Posted by: eldave1, October 11th, 2018, 7:59pm; Reply: 13
If feasible, I would give the character a differentiating name and only mention the age when intro'd.

e.g.,

TODDLER DAVE (4) rides his bike...

TODDLER DAVE
Look at me.

Later on.

TEEN DAVE (16) rides his motorcycle....

TEEN DAVE
Look at me.

And so on.
Posted by: Warren, October 11th, 2018, 8:34pm; Reply: 14

Quoted from eldave1
If feasible, I would give the character a differentiating name and only mention the age when intro'd.

e.g.,

TODDLER DAVE (4) rides his bike...

TODDLER DAVE
Look at me.

Later on.

TEEN DAVE (16) rides his motorcycle....

TEEN DAVE
Look at me.

And so on.



I've toyed with this idea and I'm worried it will really affect the flow of the script. Would you then do it for all the other characters that have grown up with the lead character?

I think Dustin made the point about this method making it easier for the actors to distinguish their lines, and I do remember reading that somewhere as well.

It's driving me a little insane at this point.

Posted by: eldave1, October 11th, 2018, 9:23pm; Reply: 15
I would.  But that's me. Maybe you can post a sample
Posted by: FrankM, October 11th, 2018, 9:31pm; Reply: 16
If the script runs chronologically, it isn't too difficult for actors to find their lines with nothing more than action setting a new age.

JAKE (6) draws stuff.

JAKE (now 16) does stuff.

JAKE (now 21) does mature stuff.

On the other hand... if there are flashbacks, and voice-over narration, and other nonlinear jazz, then yes you need to make it clear exactly who is doing and saying what every moment.
Posted by: Warren, October 11th, 2018, 9:34pm; Reply: 17

Quoted from eldave1
I would.  But that's me. Maybe you can post a sample


I PM'd you, Dave.
Posted by: Warren, October 11th, 2018, 9:41pm; Reply: 18

Quoted from FrankM
If the script runs chronologically, it isn't too difficult for actors to find their lines with nothing more than action setting a new age.

JAKE (6) draws stuff.

JAKE (now 16) does stuff.

JAKE (now 21) does mature stuff.

On the other hand... if there are flashbacks, and voice-over narration, and other nonlinear jazz, then yes you need to make it clear exactly who is doing and saying what every moment.



This is the option I've gone with at the moment as the script does run chronologically.

A follow on from my original post is; would you then do that for all the characters aging with the lead or just assume by default that everyone else ages?

JAKE, 6, draws stuff with JIM 10.

JAKE, now 26, does stuff with JIM, now 30.

With a large cast, that's a lot of "now".
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 12th, 2018, 2:14am; Reply: 19
There isn't any need for 'now'.
Posted by: FrankM, October 12th, 2018, 7:24am; Reply: 20

Quoted from DustinBowcot
There isn't any need for 'now'.


It’s certainly not mandatory, but I’d include it once for the first character introduced after a time jump. Unless there is a SUPER making the time jump bloody obvious... in which case stop beating the reader over the head with it.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 12th, 2018, 10:51am; Reply: 21
Not even needed once. We write what we see on screen. 'Now' is redundant. That said, you shouldn't get marked down for it. I like to polish my sentences so everything runs crisp. Using a redundant word is what should be termed as overwriting. Unfortunately, most think overwriting is down to how many lines are in an action block. Or, maybe that's fortunate?
Posted by: The Dark Horse, October 14th, 2018, 3:03am; Reply: 22
I'm having this problem too.

But as my thing skips around every few years I've gone with BRAD (age 10). BRAD (now 20). BRAD (now 24). Brad (45). -- "Big Fish" does this.

I don't think Benjamin Button even bothers. I'm guessing the reader can only take in so much information.

YOUNG BRAD. TEEN BRAD. MID-TWENTIES BRAD would probably clutter up my script ha.

Anyways, I hope you find one that works.

Posted by: PrussianMosby, October 30th, 2018, 2:48pm; Reply: 23
Hey, I read this thread very closely in the days it's been current.

Ha, I once thought to state toward Warren that he should take his own decisions cause well, he's experienced enough to take them and a reader will appreciate it imo.

Then I found myself in a similar situation lately where I know I may piss some people off when going away from the rulebook.

So, if I may hijack....

I got a story with a present time angle and other angles that happen in the past or even the future. Those angles between the 'present angle', long sections, aren't chronological ordered on their own.

To me it would be absolutely idiotic to indicate that in each slugline. FLASHBACK, FLASH FORWARD TWO YEARS, BACK TWO MONTHS etc etc etc...

My choice yet is to write in italics and underlined:

DIFFERENT TIMELINES FOLLOW

Then I just go with normal slugs and hope my reader paid attention.

ending with

BACK IN PRESENT

To me that would be clean and clear.

I really want to stay strict and consistent with this concept, so that I even use this format when only switching back to one single flashback.

Other segments may run 15 pages and more of course, otherwise it wouldn't make sense.

Would this be a problem for you?


Posted by: FrankM, October 30th, 2018, 3:10pm; Reply: 24
You could make the year part of the slug.

INT. 1943 - LONDON - BOMB SHELTER - DAY

EXT. 2001 - U.S.S. DESTINY ONE - SPACE

INT. 2018 - ATLANTA - BASEMENT - NIGHT

but a SUPER would be easier on the viewers (they don't see the slugs!). Once you go that route, you'd need a SUPER or other indication at every time jump, not just the first time you visit a time.

Now you mentioned timelines, which is more a sci-fi alternate reality kind of thing (most recent one I've seen was Alpha Gateway, but there are a lot of them). The slug or SUPER method should work there as well.

You can visit

INT. OUR REALITY - LONDON - SHOPPING MALL - DAY

EXT. WAR-TORN REALITY - LONDON - RUBBLE - DAY

INT. UTOPIAN REALITY - LONDON - MEETING ZONE - DAY

all without leaving a single "place."

Fringe used the SUPER method, but the only immediate clue of the reality was that place names in the other reality were spelled slightly differently. Alpha Gateway didn't give any on-screen clue at all, which was used to fool the audience about where some scenes took place.
Posted by: PrussianMosby, October 30th, 2018, 3:15pm; Reply: 25
No, that's no option. It just goes like a movie, there's no super needed. The readers and viewers are live with the story and I don't want to push them with the nose into the structure. It's rather part of the concept to guess for the connections and so on

Also, it's not about cities as you wrote, just normal locations like HALLWAY and stuff ;-)
Posted by: PrussianMosby, October 30th, 2018, 3:20pm; Reply: 26
@ timeline should just say it's 'somewhen' else. Perhaps there's a better word.
Posted by: DustinBowcot (Guest), October 31st, 2018, 2:48am; Reply: 27
Well, if you don't want to do any of that then a visual clue is all that is really necessary... and, IMO, the best way to handle this. I'll keep this simple with an easy example of what I mean.

If you have three timelines to deal with, then a visual clue from each time zone will be enough to tell the viewer where they are. 1950s could be an old car. The 70s - everyone wears flared trousers/pants, and the 90s could be a certain type of mobile phone, perhaps a Nokia 3210 or something.
Posted by: PrussianMosby, October 31st, 2018, 4:32am; Reply: 28
I get what you're saying and of course will try to emphasize the time through descriptions, then all in all the happenings are rather mundane itself.

I looked into the first section f.i.

The story starts in the present. My main character is 34.

Then there's a scene in a forest where she's 10.

Then there's a scene of other characters where my character would be 33, but she's not even in this scene.

Then there's a scene where she's in and which is only few month before the foregone scene.

Then the second last story angle continues with the other characters; so a few months forward again so to say.

Then back to present.

And this whole process repeats along the whole script and story.

What would you say about placing that one reference before: different timelines follow    ?

I just think without giving any reference readers would argue that flashbacks are not marked at all.
Print page generated: March 28th, 2024, 11:03am